Last Friday's media coverage of Fórsa's instruction - to members in the Department of Social Protection - to maintain their current blended working arrangements was extensive (much too extensive to include here) but I enclose two radio clips as Éamonn Donnelly spoke to Newstalk and RTÉ's Claire Byrne (from 19:30) about the issue. 

By the afternoon the Taoiseach had intervened, and a consultation process is to follow, while yesterday's Irish Times editorial nails its colours to the mast on the issue. However, Fórsa's position, reflected in last Friday's Irish Times front page coverage, had more than 40,000 readers on the day indicating, at the very least, a very deep public interest in any changes to blended working arrangements.

Also leading today's news is Revenue's efforts to get more than half a million PAYE workers to claim refunds they are due, while two new advisory bodies to help Ireland respond to potential trade shocks are to be established under proposals due to be considered by Cabinet today.

Elsewhere, the US president spends another day hurling bizarro bullshit into the public sphere. But as it's Gaza real estate he's turned his attention to, you know it's not good.

Finally, a week after the Chinese AI company, Deepseek, disrupted tech markets last week, one government TD has some advice for those accessing its services. Essentially that advice is "careful now."

Zen 

No matter what you think of Boyzone, the new three-part TV documentary about them is compelling viewing. Heartily recommended. There's a little bit of panto (looking at you Louis Walsh) and villainy (same) but it is otherwise an honest testament...but I can't help worrying if Mikey Graham is OK. 

Have a great day.

Niall Shanahan